Seizing the chance to shift the topic from Richter, she quickly removed her MacBook Air and powered it up. “When I first told Mendez about the discrepancies,” she explained, settling against the headboard, her legs stretched out in front of her, “I hadn’t put two and two together. The data showed random places where the restaurant data and the pier ‘special product’ shipment numbers didn’t match. But since then, I’ve found four more cities with those kinds of discrepancies, and…” She clicked on a collage of photos, showing two men exchanging envelopes and turned the screen for him to see more clearly. Blake moved to sit next to her, their bodies aligned from hip to foot. She swallowed against the dryness in her throat, and continued. “That’s Ignacio, the nephew,” she said, pointing out the man on the left with a scar down his cheek and long black hair. “The one on the right is Alex Gomez. He’s the regional manager for the restaurants here locally.”

Blake stared at the photo and then glared at Kara. “You took these shots?”

“Yes.”

He rotated to stare at her. “Are you flipping nuts, Kara? If you would have been caught—”

“I used a long-range zoom lens. I wasn’t even close to them. The fact that was able to, though, tells you how poorly they’re running the operation.” Kara pulled up another picture, this one of a small boat floating next to a larger one, and men loading it with boxes. “It looks like they skim the product right here on the pier. Once it leaves though, I’m clueless. I don’t know where it’s going or who might be involved. I just know Ignacio is where it starts.”

He cut her a sideways look. “You’re just a secretary, my ass.”

She bristled. “I’m offended by that statement for every secretary that saves her boss’s ass about ten times a day.”

His lips twisted wryly. “When’s the next shipment out?”

“Midnight tonight.” She glanced at the clock. It was already ten. “In two hours.”

“Then I think tonight is the night Ignacio meets the new head of security.”

Kara shut her computer. “I want to go.”

“No.”

“I can point out things you wouldn’t see right away.”

“I’m not putting you in danger.”

Kara felt like she was in the Twilight Zone. A few hours ago, she was worried he’d want to kill her. Now, she was convincing him she didn’t need to be protected. This was just…odd. “I thought you weren’t letting me out of your sight? I could still run.”

“You won’t.”

“Are you 100% sure?”

His lips thinned. “Fine, you can ride along, but you’re staying in the truck.”

“Fine, but that won’t keep me from running. You’ll need me by your side.”

“I’ll cuff you to the wheel.”

Her eyes went wide. “You wouldn’t.”